Springs, shocks, struts, Best set up for a street cat? Options

[EJP914]

Looking to replace these on my "73 1.7 and would like some opinions on what is the best combination for a street 914. Car will not be autocrossed or tracked.
Car has original shocks, springs and struts and it tends to lean quite a bit in corners and "floats" over humps and bumps in the roads. Thinking this can be done better.
Thanks for the opinions.
Ed

[Jamie]

Looking to replace these on my "73 1.7 and would like some opinions on what is the best combination for a street 914. Car will not be autocrossed or tracked.
Car has original shocks, springs and struts and it tends to lean quite a bit in corners and "floats" over humps and bumps in the roads. Thinking this can be done better.
Thanks for the opinions.
Ed

New shock inserts in front, shocks and new #100 springs in rear, then add a stock sway bar in front and it rides and corners like a street racer! :driving:Exactly what I did with my 73 1.7L years ago, and it's a whole new ride.

[EJP914]

Should have been more descriptive on my question.

Shocks / struts - Bilstein, Sachs/Boge, KYB, others???

Springs - 90 lb, 100 lb, 110, 120???

Which of these best for street?

Ed

[brant]

KYB's are generally hated here...
also referred to as "kill yer back"

I like bigger springs personally... I'd go with 140's
the front sway bar makes all of the difference.... don't expect great handling without adding one....

buy performance brake pads... ceramics... no sense having better handling without better brakes at the same time... and how old are your tires?.... performance tires will wake these cars up

[914Sixer]

Best street set up for stock ride is the package DR 914 is selling. Old school hydraulic shocks (made to Boge specs). Four shocks, perches and new springs $500 + shipping.

[r_towle]

Koni adjustables
New stock springs
21 mm adjustable front anti saw bar
No rear bar

[JamesM]

KYB's are generally hated here...
also referred to as "kill yer back"

I like bigger springs personally... I'd go with 140's
the front sway bar makes all of the difference.... don't expect great handling without adding one....

buy performance brake pads... ceramics... no sense having better handling without better brakes at the same time... and how old are your tires?.... performance tires will wake these cars up

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

KYBs, at least the white ones, are complete trash.

I love Bilstein's in everything I drive.
For street, stock front sway bar. If you cant find a stock one then 19mm aftermarket. 21mm is overkill, I have one in my autox car and im starting to think its to large even for that.

Rear sway bar you can live without (I prefer without)

Rear springs 90-100 with the stock front sway bar 140s with the 19mm bar.

If ride comfort is your primary concern dont overlook control arm bushings. They are a PITA but 50 year old rubber isnt rubber anymore. Absolutely DO NOT go single piece poly on those as they will bind.

[brant]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/agree.gif)

KYBs, at least the white ones, are complete trash.

I love Bilstein's in everything I drive.
For street, stock front sway bar. If you cant find a stock one then 19mm aftermarket. 21mm is overkill, I have one in my autox car and im starting to think its to large even for that.

Rear sway bar you can live without (I prefer without)

Rear springs 90-100 with the stock front sway bar 140s with the 19mm bar.

If ride comfort is your primary concern dont overlook control arm bushings. They are a PITA but 50 year old rubber isnt rubber anymore. Absolutely DO NOT go single piece poly on those as they will bind.
[/quote]


I like this

[Shivers]

> Springs, shocks, struts, Best set up for a street cat?--Looking to replace these on my "73 1.7 and would like some opinions on what is the best combination for a street 914. Car will not be autocrossed or tracked.
Car has original shocks, springs and struts and it tends to lean quite a bit in corners and "floats" over humps and bumps in the roads. Thinking this can be done better.
Thanks for the opinions.
Ed

What is your goal? No autocross or tracked still leaves a lot of room. "it tends to lean quite a bit in corners" makes me think you may enjoy getting around town and having a good time while you do it. " and "floats" over humps and bumps in the roads." This made me think you may enjoy a set up mentioned here already. a front 19mm sway-bar, larger torsion bars can be used depending how stiff you want it. 140 rear springs, adjustable spring height Bilstein sport rear shocks. Are you going stock or some mods? You mentioned struts, if you wish to convert to five lug brakes and rims you can get the right 911 struts that bolt right up and the rest up front bolts on. Eric Shea has rear hubs for five lug that are also bolt up to the stock 914 stub axles. The rest for the rear is also bolt up. If no mods, and the spindles on the struts are good, Bilstein also makes a very nice incert for the strut. Have fun

[Dave_Darling]

News flash: There is no "best". Because everyone has different wants, needs, and priorities.

To some, the "best" is the stock setup. It is the way the car was designed, after all!

To others, the "best" is whatever is allowed in their current street-car-type autocross class.

To still others, the "best" is whatever lets them take their favorite canyon corners flat-out without lifting, and to heck with rules or comfort!

Other folks have other priorities.

--DD

[Mikey914]

When we engineered our springs for a "stock" setup we found the geometry suggests that 100# should be optimal for stock weights. The Factory installed 66-68# springs. This should give you the best of both worlds. As for as the shocks / struts Bilstien is the best.

[rfinegan]

My 75 rides nice and handles well for express way and local driving. and carves well in turns...
Stock front torsion bars, 19 mm sway bar and Koni red adjustable struts. On the rear is Koni yellow adjustable and 120# 2.5 coil over springs and stock rear sway bar. 205/15 tires

[EJP914]

Goal is to find some set up that is comfortable enough for occaisional long drives and slighty better than stock handling. Dont need filling rattling stiff. I know that leaves alot of open ground between the two extemes.
Didnt want to buy something and after its on the car say to myself too stiff or too soft. Lots to consider. Many thanks for the replies and opinions.
Ed

[bbrock]

If you do the math on spring rates listed in the factory manual, the stock rear springs were actually only rated at about 50-56 lbs. I tested my originals and they were still in spec so cleaned them up and ran with them. I paired the stock springs and torsion bars with Bilstein HD shocks, all new rubber bushings front and rear, and factory sway bars front and rear. I really like the ride for spirited street driving and leisurely touring. It is firm, but not harsh. I just completed a 600 mile round trip last week and will repeat it next week. I tore the (IMG:style_emoticons/default/stromberg.gif) out of some mountain twisties along the way and never felt fatigued by the ride at all. In fact, I felt myself thinking the 914 with refurbished suspension was easily as comfortable for long distance driving as any of the more modern cars I have owned.

[Van B]

Goal is to find some set up that is comfortable enough for occaisional long drives and slighty better than stock handling. Dont need filling rattling stiff. I know that leaves alot of open ground between the two extemes.
Didnt want to buy something and after its on the car say to myself too stiff or too soft. Lots to consider. Many thanks for the replies and opinions.
Ed

I think what you are attempting is actually more difficult than moving left or right in the spectrum of chassis setup.
I find myself at an impasse of decision making too. My car didn't come with sway bars and I kinda like the fight of driving it like it is. I have a 996 with Ohlins, monoball, and full GT3 setup. By comparison, those decision were easier because I knew I wanted a sharp knife!

For the 914, I just can't pick a direction...

[JamesM]

When we engineered our springs for a "stock" setup we found the geometry suggests that 100# should be optimal for stock weights. The Factory installed 66-68# springs. This should give you the best of both worlds. As for as the shocks / struts Bilstien is the best.

Did all 3 variants of the factory springs fall in the range? Factory springs had either 1, 2, or 3 paint marks indicating stiffness, but i dont recall what the rates were.

Last car i put factory springs in I chose the 3 mark springs for being the stiffest.

[JamesM]

Yup, here it is...
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=95741

[dr914@autoatlanta.com]

boge / sachs shocks front and rear and stock rear springs stock front torsion bars, for the street 195/65x15 michelin tires, good alignment and tire balance

Looking to replace these on my "73 1.7 and would like some opinions on what is the best combination for a street 914. Car will not be autocrossed or tracked.
Car has original shocks, springs and struts and it tends to lean quite a bit in corners and "floats" over humps and bumps in the roads. Thinking this can be done better.
Thanks for the opinions.
Ed

[slivel]

The one thing that has not been mentioned in this discussion is tires. The tire tech from 50 years ago has been far surpassed today. I'm guessing that the race tires of 50 years ago could not compete with the average street tire today. So when you put modern tires on an old suspension and drive aggressively, you are most likely going to get more body roll and dive. To compensate for this, many 914 owners have upgraded to higher spring rates and shocks. How stiff depends on your personal preference and driving style. My point is a dead stock suspension with today's tires may disappoint some of our community.

[BENBRO02]

Don’t overlook a sticky set of tires. I have a stock suspension without a sway bar a my car handles pretty well with a set of Yokohama Advan Flevas 205-55-15s with a tread wear rating of 300. If all parts are in working order, I believe tires are the most critical choice. If you buy all season tires your car will not handle as well as if you buy ultra high performance summer tires. If you don’t drive in bad weather skip the all seasons. My tires do have a smaller diameter which makes the speedometer read high but it also helps acceleration.